


Stay By My Side

by Withstarryeyes



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Marvel - Freeform, Reader Insert, Reader-Insert, Steve Rodgers - Freeform, Warning:Blood and violence, h/c, shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-20
Updated: 2015-11-29
Packaged: 2018-04-27 07:44:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5039884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Withstarryeyes/pseuds/Withstarryeyes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You're a shield Agent who just happens to be dating Steve Rogers. But when you get shot in a mission will your boyfriend dare to become your fiancé? Or will the relationship crumble under the stress of your surgery. Parts in 2nd person with chapters in 3rd following Steve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! This is my first Fanfic for Ao3 I'd really appreciate feedback on my writing and what you would like to see. Thanks!

Your thoughts are stuck in molasses and there are hands in your hair. Light touches to your face and hands and arms and there’s a pressure in your stomach. You feel warmth pooling in your side and your eyes take in a blurry scene. So many questions lay on your tongue… Why? How? When? Who is that guy in front of you? But the words die in your mouth and on the breath that won't come out. Tears leak from your eyes when you feel it. The pain that is spiking in your abdomen. Your eyes slip down to your stomach as you struggle up to see the bullet wound in your side. It’s circular and deep and blood comes gushing out like a geyser as the ringing in your ears gets louder. Your face contorts in that way it does when you’re about to cry. Your chin wobbles and you finally focus on the face in front of you. Strong jaw with blonde hair and eyes dripping with concern. He speaks with a voice that hums your bones and he’s repeating himself over and over. The words escape your ears but you don’t care because the voice is all you need to anchor yourself to the scene.  


A cacophony of sound reaches your ears like a wave crashing on a beach. Tony’s in the back shouting into his phone and Coulson’s barking at the crowd to stand back. Banner’s running towards you. His flannel is tied around his waist with his chest bare because he didn’t have time to fully dress after he de-hulked. You find your voice somewhere between Banner reaching you and Steve taking your hand in his.  


“I... I was shot?” It comes like a question but you know from the pain and the sight of blood seeping through your favorite navy tank top.  


“Shh…” Steve hushes and you notice the tears lining his blue eyes.  


“(Y/N), I need to apply pressure. This is going to hurt. I need you to focus for me okay?” Banner says to you. He removes his red flannel and kneels to get a higher vantage point on your side.  


“Focus on what?” You ask as black frames your vision, zooming the scene in and out like a camera.  


“Not passing out.” Banner winces when he finally applies the pressure and your back arches up.  


The sleepiness clogging your mind flies out with the new wave of pain. Clenching your teeth you growl at Bruce.  
“Son of a bitch.” You cry and tilt your head away from the scientist.  


“(Y/N), look at me,” Steve coaxes and you lift your eyes to meet his.  


For the first time since you met him he looks scared. Steve’s always been the fearless one. With you never in danger he really didn’t need to worry. You were working at SHIELD before he was even out of the ice and hadn’t died yet so he just figured you could take care of yourself. Which was true until you miss the person behind you with a gun because you’re distracted by Clint falling out of the damn sky with seemingly nowhere to go. Of course Tony’s in the air and catches him before anything happens but by then you’re on the ground with no air left in your lungs and a hole in your body.  


“I love you!” You blurt out at your boyfriend. Your vision is fading and you mumble a sorry to Bruce and kiss Steve’s hand because you really don’t know if you’re going to make it. If you don’t you want your last words to Steve to really matter.  
You have just enough time to hear Steve’s “I love you, (Y/N) to the moon and back” before you lose all awareness.


	2. Decisions... Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve thinks about the future while (Y/N) fights for their life.

Steve runs a hand across his blue eyes, grunting as his headache spikes to the sound of hospital announcements  
"Dr. Bailey." An ice pick is being drilled through his skull, "ICU, Dr. Bailey," there's definitely a swarm of bees stinging the base of his neck. The announcements are too loud for Steve and the hospital feels stuffy. Channeling Tony, Steve goes to hunt down caffeine.  


Abandoning the evil green chair, he moves to the coffee machine down the hallway. Steve passes a few nurses and the smiles he gets flips his stomach. (Y/N) should be smiling at him not the redhead nurse with too tight scrubs. Returning back to his chair with a scalding cup of joe Steve smiles at the familiar head sticking out from to top of the adjacent chair.  


“Sam,” Steve greets, his voice raspy.  


“Captain,” Sam greets in his usual joking way but the smile doesn’t quite reach his eyes. (Y/N) was meaningful to the entire team not just Steve. “Where's the coffee?” Sam asks, moving up and out of his chair before Steve has the chance to say down the hall.  
He can’t keep his leg from bobbing up and down. His mind keeps flashing to the box on his dresser with the velvet exterior and his mother’s wedding ring inside. He had plans for that ring… but now… they could be shredded in the span of a night.  


Steve never thought he’d be the one to be waiting for (Y/N). Sitting vigil while (Y/N) fights for their life after a mission. After Bucky and the hospital and waking up next to Sam, Steve had sworn off dating. He didn’t want that stress to be put on her. But now he’s met (Y/N) and a few dates later they were practically living together. After a year and he’d been sold on her (Y/E/C) eyes and dazzling smile. He loved the way she smelled and how she’d curl up with a good book after a particularly bad mission.  
He didn’t know anymore if he wanted this. This agonizing panic that his life-and lover- might be ripped away from him again. He didn’t know if he wanted to marry a girl like him with a job like him and risks like him without the super serum to protect her like him. What if it was too risky?  


“That’s a new development, “ Sam whistles at the ring box Steve is clutching in his hands.  


Steve jumps and shoves the box back in his pocket, “Well I don’t know if it’ll even be a development.”  


Sam claps his friend on the shoulder. They’re all worried but it seems like Steve is losing some hope. “She’s a fighter, Cap. She’ll die the same day Stark doesn’t design a new suit. She’ll be fine,” Sam shook his head and blew out a breath.  


“You didn’t see her okay? Her… The bullet… the blood that was… It was bad Sam. Not a quick patch-up and then home to watch a movie. It hit her in the side, collapsed her lung and maybe hit a few organs. She couldn’t breath. I just kept hearing (Y/N) gasping and cursing and breathing heavily through the pain. I can’t go through another heartbreak like Peggy.” Steve snaps, his voice starting at a yell but ending in a sigh.  


“You love her. I don't’ mean to go all hallmark on your ass but-” Sam’s pep talk is cut off by a serious man standing in scrubs.  


“Family of (Y/N)?” A doctor’s voice rings out. He is wearing blood soaked his scrubs and his brown hair is flopping into his brown eyes. Gosh the guy looked like a kid. No way he graduated medical school.  


“I’m her boyfriend.” Steve says, standing up and striding over to the doctor, “I’m the only family she has. Her parents died young.” Steve still couldn’t believe that they had to send (Y/N) to a regular hospital. She was too risky to transport to S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ right away.  


“Oh, I see. And this is?” The doctor points in the direction of Sam.  


“Sam Wilson, sir. I’m her friend and co-worker.”  


“Nice to meet you both. I’m Dr. Marshall, the doctor assigned to (Y/N) I need to talk to you about her condition.”  


Steve nods for Dr. Marshall to continue. His worry was spiking in the silence that follows while the man collects his thoughts.  


“Well here’s the thing. (Y/N) has had a severe trauma and we have her stabilized for now. However, she’s looking to crash in about a half hour unless we get some blood transported over here and our blood bank is backed up. She’s AB+. Are either of you willing to donate?”  


Crash. Blood. Stabilized for now? Steve sinks back into one of the chairs as the message Dr. Marshall was giving seeps into his mind. (Y/N) could die. She wasn’t stable, she was still in danger and they didn’t have a blood donor. Steve himself couldn’t donate. There is no telling what his super-serum blood could do to her body.  


“I can.” Sam says, stepping forward as his co-worked buries his face in his hands.  


“What? Sam you don’t have to.” Steve cut Sam off. There were tears in his voice but he didn’t want Sam to feel forced.  


“It’s a no brainer. I’m the right type and you can’t donate. Just because you’re dating her doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t want to see her alive.”  


Steve hugs Sam- a silent thanks. Sam is led back to give blood leaving Steve waiting for everything with a ring box as heavy as a brick in his pocket and a decision in his mind creating a battlefield. This decision could ruin him…. but then again that is exactly what he’s afraid of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading. If you liked the chapter please leave a kudos or a comment. Happy Halloween everybody :)


	3. Drowning

You seem to recognize that you’re drowning in your mind. There's a black sea and you’re treading water. There’s this alarm that’s beeping above your head as if a helicopter just keeps circling… but you never see it to get help. You are getting tired, your legs feel like you’ve biked a marathon. Your eyelids want to close but you keep them open because you have to get back to Steve.  


Steve with the kind smile. Steve that made you feel human again. Steve that showed you the job could be fun that you weren’t just a soldier for S.H.I.E.L.D. but that you were helping. Steve who saved you from being single forever. You weren’t looking to date when Steve waltzed in. Not after you lost your partner and saw have short life was. How short your life was if you got married and you couldn’t bear to thinking of someone going through the pain of losing you.  


But the moon is luring you, the bright light calling your name. You want to swim towards it, away from the icy water and the choppy waves. You want a break. However something registers that going that way was going away from Steve and you couldn’t do that.  


You feel a bump on your leg and twirl around in the water. your eyes just see water and waves and foam. There’s something under the water that you can’t see. You dip your hands deeper in the water, your fingers going numb instantly. You feel another bump and you lose your air for a moment. Gasping, you dive under the water and let the thing drag you down to the bottom of the ocean.  


Your eyes flutter open to harsh lights. Squinting in the light you turn your head to the side to get a good look at your surroundings. There are people talking to you but your ears are catching the words before they reach your brain. Your chest throbs and the scene is blurry white, with a bleary pale doctor staring down at you. You close your heavy eyes and drift back to the surface….  


“She woke up it’s a good sign, really,” Dr. Marshall tells Steve who is biting his fingernails.  
“But she didn’t stay conscious. She’s not sleeping, she’s back into unconsciousness. how is that good?” Steve questions, his blonde brows creasing his forehead.  


Dr. Marshall pats Steve’s shoulder, “She didn’t crash, she’s fully stable. All good signs. Now it’s a waiting game, yes she’s unconscious but she’s showing promise of waking up again.”  


What is promise wasn’t enough for Steve? What if he needed certainty to ground himself. Steve’s body itched to do something, make a decision, save something. He wanted to do something other than sit here and wait for his almost-fiance to die. He needed to talk to someone.  


“Sam!” Steve called out.  


“Yes Cap?” Sam replied.  


“Watch over (Y/N) I need to see a friend.” Steve said, walking past a shocked Sam Wilson and out the nearest exit.  


He needed to expel energy so with a gasp of air Steve set out on a run to locate his best friend in this century. One fiery red-headed assassin.


	4. Marriage?

“Is it so bad to be unsure? Is it so bad that I don’t want to lose her like I lost Peggy? Natasha I’m trying but is it so bad-” Steve said in a low growl, running a hand through his blonde hair.

“To be scared no. It’s not so bad, But to let it-the fear- make decisions then yes,” Natasha answers, her eyes steadily gazing at Captain.

“What if…” Just like that Steve’s anger was gone. Tears filled his eyes as he slumped down the wall. He was scared out of his mind and he didn’t know what to do. Helpless, he was helpless and it felt like the few seconds before he went into the ice. Except this time he had a choice and he had control.

“What if you make a bad decision and regret it for the rest of your life. Trust me Rogers I’ve been there. Don’t make the same mistake.” Nat said before walking out of the room to leave Steve with his thoughts.

Steve fumbled through his coat pocket, his hand brushing against the satin interior. His fingers bumped the velvet box as he pulled it out: the ring, the ring that held all hope and all future. Steve peered down at the emerald embedded into the gold ring, diamonds spreading like feathers on a bird wing down the sides of the wings. He had stopped long enough to collect it from his dresser. If he in some way was certain enough to stop and pick up a ring, _his_ ring, then some part of him wanted a future with Y/N and now he was ready to announce it.

Clutching his keys Steve starts the motorcycle, swinging a lean leg over the side and moving into the night in search of his bride.

Your eyes blink open to the blank, white slate of a hospital room. Your throat aches and there’s cotton in your mind. You look to your side and see the culprit, morphine. The one drug that always makes you feel like you’re thinking on 72 hours of no sleep. Groaning, you turn onto your side and gasp as hot pain flares up your side. _Bullet wound. Blood pooling at your side, clutching Steve’s hand. Bruce applying pressure._ The memories invade your mind like a swarm of bees and suddenly the room is spinning.  


“Steve? Steve?” You ask, shutting your eyes against the blinding tilting of the room with the knowledge that you were shot and you almost died.  


“He stepped out honey.” A voice smooth like butter soothes from your bedside.  


“Where Sam?” You whimper, the dizziness has faded now you realize as you open your eyes to look at Sam’s brown eyes. The pain is still burning your side but it’s settled to a candle from a bonfire.  


“I don’t know, Y/N. But I do know he’ll be back and I do know that he’s worried about you.” Sam says, a smile gracing his face.  


“It’s my job to scare people. Without it what kind of Agent would I be?” You joke, a smile tugging at your raw lips.  


“Don’t make a habit of it, Y/N” Steve’s voice emerges from the doorway.  


You fight back the pain as you lift your body up on your elbows. Sam adjusts the pillows in a way that you can lay back while remaining upright. Your eyes travel up and down Steve’s body. His hair is ruffled in the way it gets when he’s been riding his cycle. Purple smudges the underneath of his blue eyes which are ringed in the red of tears. His smile is tired much like his body sagging as if under the weight of a house. He’s holding something in his hand and you open your mouth to ask what it is when he glides over to take your hand.  


“I love you,” He sighs, looking into your eyes and pleased at the alertness he can see in them. You have a gash on your temple and your skin is translucent but he can feel the life brimming under your skin. You glow to him. You look as tired as he feels but somehow, under the sickness you’re still beautiful to him.  


“I love you too,” You reply, blushing slightly at the way he’s looking at you.  


“You know when I went into the ice I had time to think about what I wanted. At the time it was Peggy and Bucky and getting my family back. But now, in this time it’s you. I want you and when you got shot I lost that for a minute. I didn’t have the shocking cold water to remind me of my goals, of my dreams and of my future. I had Natasha for that," Steve chuckles a little and draws in a breath before continuing. "Y/N I love you with every part of my heart and I want you to be my future. Will you?” Steve asks, bending down to perch on one knee. His hands are holding the ring box, his mother's emerald catching your eye.  


“Yes,” You whisper because it doesn’t feel real that he wants this and he wants you. “Yes.” You repeat a little louder because you want him to be your future too.  
It was gonna be a hell of a recovery for you but you knew that Steve Rogers, your fiance, would be there every step of the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for sitting through this and reading it. This was my first fic that I wrote for ao3 and I really hope you liked it. I'd really appreciate it if you would take the time to leave some feedback so I know how to improve my writing to please you guys more.


End file.
